How Will DIRECTV Be Different Under TPG?

By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man –Follow me on X.
Former editor of Satellite DIRECT magazine. Reported on DIRECTV for 30 years.

TV Answer Man, I was wondering how TPG will change DIRECTV now that they will own the company? — Hal, Boston.

Hal, it’s been a busy morning. First, AT&T announced that it was selling its remaining 70 percent stake in DIRECTV to TPG, the private equity firm. Then, less than an hour later, DIRECTV announced that it has agreed to buy EchoStar’s video assets including Dish’s satellite TV service and its live streaming service, Sling TV.

There are two important things to remember here. One, the AT&T-TPG deal, which would give the latter 100 percent ownership of DIRECTV, is not expected to be completed until the second half of 2025. Two, the DIRECTV-Dish deal must be approved by federal regulators and that could take more than a year.

So, don’t expect any major changes with both TV services until the deals are officially done.

However, when they are, and I expect they will be, I don’t foresee TPG running DIRECTV significantly differently as the sole owner. The private equity firm already had considerable influence over how the TV provider operates so it’s not likely it has plans for a major change.

TPG is dedicated to generating cash and increasing value for the company. And that’s been the priority of the current executive team for DIRECTV. So, it will be business as usual, albeit with a bigger audience when the Dish sale is approved.

I will add that the AT&T sale to TPG is interesting because it stretches out the payments to the telco through 2029. Does that mean that TPG believes it has a five-year window for DIRECTV to be a successful cash-producing company? Not necessarily. But if TPG isn’t successful rebuilding DIRECTV as a streaming company combined with a satellite service that offers cheaper, slimmer TV packages, I could see it start to bring down the curtain at the end of the decade.

The TV Answer Man will answer more question about the DIRECTV-Dish deal today. If you have a question, send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvanswerman.com Please include your first name and hometown in your message.

The TV Answer Man is veteran journalist Phillip Swann who has covered the TV technology scene for more than three decades. He will report on the latest news and answer your questions regarding new devices and services that are changing the way you watch television. See the bio for Phillip Swann here.

Have a question about new TV technologies? Send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvanswerman.com Please include your first name and hometown in your message.